Butt question

[KyNola]

Did two 5 pound butts yesterday.  Smoked 4 hours then boated them in apple juice, covered in foil and finished them in the oven.  When I took the foil off of each tin foil pan, I was amazed to find liquid in the pan at least an inch deep.  I had poured apple juice about an eighth of an inch deep when I boated them.  Granted the butts had a good deal of fat in them that rendered nicely and the meat tastes fabulous(thanks Gizmo for the 4 hour smoke advice)but is that amount of liquid unusual?  I'm thinking the butcher shop where I bought the butts might be getting "moisture enhanced" pork.  What's your opinion?  ???

KyNola

[Tiny Tim]

I don't know, but I think something else happened there...possibly from covering it as opposed to the way I do 'em uncovered.  My last butt (week ago), I put in a foil pan when I put it in the smoker with about a 1/4 cup of apple juice and just let it be for the 23 hours it was in the Bradley.  When I removed it, there was only burned stuff around the butt in the pan.  When I did 'em in the oven, I put 'em on a smoker rack above a drip pan...granted this drip pan had a pin hole in it that I didn't know about, but I still only had about a 1/4 cup of runoff from the butt in there.  And I'm pretty sure mine have all had the solution injections.

I want to do one that isn't injected once to see what it's like, but it might just turn out like the "Smart Chicken" (picked some up once at the store, I think it's organically grown and doesn't have the solution in it) that I'll never buy again.

[Habanero Smoker]

For whole cuts of meat, to tell if you are getting "enhanced" pork, it has to be listed on the ingredients label. If anything other than pork is listed, you got "enhanced" pork.

[Tiny Tim]

When the store packages it, does that make a difference?  Just curious.

[Gizmo]

  When I took the foil off of each tin foil pan, I was amazed to find liquid in the pan at least an inch deep.  I had poured apple juice about an eighth of an inch deep when I boated them.  Granted the butts had a good deal of fat in them that rendered nicely and the meat tastes fabulous(thanks Gizmo for the 4 hour smoke advice)but is that amount of liquid unusual? KyNola

That is what I see as well and I don't believe the ones I have used are "Juiced".  There is a lot of fat that renders out and into the foil pan.  I use to believe the extra liquid aided in keeping the butt moist but after doing the full oven vs. full BS, there was no noticable difference in the moisture content.  Of course the rendered fat in the BS all ends up in the water bowl and burnt up on the Vtray.  The extra liquid that is generated is why you only need 1/4 inch to start with or for a little flavoring (like if you add some Jack Daniels). 

[Arcs_n_Sparks]

Agree with Gizmo; there is a lot of juice that renders out while smokng.

Arcs_n_Sparks